Together We Die: The 100th Hunger Games
by lorethevac
Summary: In an alternate reality where the 74th Hunger Games were won by Cato, who killed Katniss and Peeta to win the crown, where there was no rebellion, the Games go on. Watch the 4th Quarter Quell play out from the District 2 boy's POV.
1. Chapter 1: Let The Games Begin

It's different this year. I can still remember the new President Goltsworth's words.

_"To show that working together is a futile measure, each tribute will be partnered with their district partner. if one of them dies, the other has an hour to kill another tribute before they die as well."_

I itch at the black collar around my neck. The collar is the device that very well might kill me in these Games. If Syndi dies, and I can't kill another tribute within an hour, the collar will explode and take my head with it. They told us about them in the training center. "It's completely waterproof and shock-resistant. If you tamper with it at all, it will detonate by itself. And you wouldn't want to do that to your partner, would you?"

No, I wouldn't. The gong is about to sound. Luckily for me, Sydni is right next to me on her platform. We can talk to each other. "Don't try to kill anyone!" Sydni screams. "If you die, then I'll be next!" I nod in agreement. Then the gong sounds, and we all run for the Cornucopia.

"No killing! No killing!" screams the boy next to me. I start yelling it too. By the time we get to the golden horn, everyone has taken up the call. The boy who originally yelled for us to not fight grabs a knife from the pile of weapons around the horn, and holds it in front of him, ready to defend himself from anyone who tries to attack him. "Anyone gonna try and kill someone?" screams the girl from 11. No one makes a move. The boy slowly drops his arm down. Then he climbs up to the top of the horn to make an announcement. "Many of you have heard the stories of the first Hunger Games that took place over 100 years ago. Our ancestors worked together for a while, and survived together as a result. Only when they stopped working together did people start to die. I believe that if we work together, then we can-" A spear flies out of the sky and goes right through his chest. He falls off the back of the horn and a cannon sounds.


	2. Chapter 2: A Thickening Plot

For a moment after the cannon goes off, and the boy's body hit the ground with a thump behind the horn, there is silence. We all look up and watch the hovercraft that shot the spear fly away. Then a beeping noise permeates the stillness. We all turn as one to look at the black-haired girl from district 8. The collar on her neck flashes red and emits an annoying beeping noise. She looks down at it in horror, then snaps her head up and screams, "It's me! It's me!" Everyone near the girl screams and runs in terror from her as she frantically sprints for a weapon to kill someone and save herself. I grab Sydni's arm and pull her away from the horn. We run away towards the meadow of tall grass and flowers as the girl chases after another tribute. "This is crazy," Sydni says. "Tell me about it," I reply. She blows a strand of her curly brown hair out of her face as she runs. "I got this backpack and a knife. Were you able to snag anything from the horn?" She cranes her neck to look back at the tan-colored bag bouncing against her back. "Nothing. Nothing at all," I reply. She shrugs and says, "Oh well. We can always go back and stock up once we meet up with the other Careers." I nod as we continue our jog. "Where are we going?" Sydni asks. "That meadow is filled with flowers and grass. There must be some kind of water source over there."

Sydni and I run for about forty-five minutes until we reach a large lake. Four tributes are already there, yelling at each other. I recognize Rachelle and Togru, the tributes from 1. "We got here first!" Rachelle yells. "Don't make me use this knife!" She brandishes and waves her dagger in the other girl's face. I remember the other two now; they're the tributes from 12. The boy from 12 pushes his partner behind him and says, "Ok, we'll leave. But let us fill up our canteens first." Rachelle nods and backs up as the two tributes bend down to collect their water. Suddenly, a high-pitched scream sounds from somewhere across the valley. It cuts off abruptly, as if someone had muted a television program. Then a cannon fires. "Guess her hour ran out," grumbles Togru, sitting propped up against a rock. He always seems to be in a bad mood. "We don't know that for sure," says Sydni. "Maybe she found another tribute." "We'll know for sure pretty soon. If we hear another cannon in sixty minutes, it means she was able to kill another tribute in time," I reply. "They're gonna blow us up if we run out of time?" the little girl from 12 whimpers. The boy from 12 puts a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, you'll be ok as long as I'm ok." Rachelle taps her foot and clears her throat, annoyed. The boy from 12 looks over his shoulder at her, and then grabs the girl from 12's hand and gets up. Both start walking away from the lake.

Rachelle looks at Togru and nods. He gets up from his rock, pulling a bow and a quiver of arrows out of nowhere, and fires one at the departing tributes. It hits the boy square in the back of the head, and flies straight through. He falls, and a cannon fires. The girl from 12 screams as his body hits the ground. Her collar starts flashing and beeping, and she grabs at it, tying to rip it off. Sydni and I look at each other silently. We know why Togru killed him. The girl from 12 struggles in vain with the device for a few seconds, and then freezes. She snaps her head up at the four of us with an animalistic look in her eyes. Then she charges at us, hands outstretched like claws and teeth gnashing. A knife cuts her down before she can even take ten steps. "Crazy girl," says someone behind me. I turn and see Marilee from District 4 sticking the rest of her knives in her backpack. She must have arrived a few seconds ago. We all turn and watch the girl from 12 writhe in pain on the ground. The knife still sticks in her chest where it hit. She makes no effort to pull it out. Togru loads another arrow and aims it at the girl's head. Rachelle knocks the arrow away with her arm. "No, she doesn't deserve a quick death like that."

We all know the stories about District 12. Until the third quell, they were the underdog district, the one people never expected to win. During the third Quell, where all the tributes were reaped from the victors, there was only one victor still alive in their district, a man named Haymitch. Since there was no female victor in their district, another victor was selected randomly from another district to even out the numbers. Ilga of District 1 was selected. Haymitch and Ilga died on the first day, and a girl from 7 named Johanna won the Games. After that, since no victor was able to mentor the District 12 tributes, two specialists from the Capitol were sent to live there. After that, District 12 started winning almost every year. They became more intelligent, their training scores started to pass up even the Career's, and they became an actual threat in the Games. Everyone in the districts hates them for it, but District 1 holds the biggest grudge. Ilga had been loved like a sister and mother.

The girl from 12 stops squirming around and lies still on the blood-soaked grass. A cannon fires. As the hovercraft picks up her body, all attention turns to Marilee. Marilee's one of those people who you wouldn't expect to be a killer. She's the most charming person I've ever met, with her perfect smile and engaging eyes. But she's a professional murderer, a trained assassin. "Marilee, where's Jude?" Sydni asks. "I'm not sure," Marilee responds in her singsong voice. "You don't know where he is?" Sydni asks. "Well, we got separated at the horn after the boy got speared and the girl went crazy. I think he stayed back to get weapons and supplies. But I'm sure he'll-" A cannon fires. After a second, Marilee's collar starts beeping. She takes a step back. "No. Impossible, he…" She takes another step. "NO!" She pulls out a knife and rushes the nearest tribute, Rachelle. It's funny how quickly we switch sides with Marilee. Rachelle knees Marilee in the chest, knocking her over, and then jumps on top of her. Marilee struggles feebly under the larger Rachelle. "Togru, get the rope!" screams Rachelle. Togru grabs some rope from his backpack and runs over to the two girls.

In a few minutes, Marilee is tied up on the ground, hands behind her back and legs knotted together. Please, let me go!" she begs. "I won't kill you guys, I promise!" Tears run down her face as she struggles to get free. We all sit down and watch her roll around on the ground. No one says it, but we all want to see what will happen to us if our partner dies. As the minutes tick by, the beeping gets faster and louder. Marilee has been reduced to begging to each of us separately. "Togru, come on. You know I'm a good person. Please help me find someone to kill. Sydni, what if you and Lucas go find a tribute for me? Then I can live and help you guys win!" Looking into her aqua-blue eyes, I'm almost tempted to jump up and start searching, to help her win. Then I remember how she rushed Rachelle, so quickly and without warning, and I realize that I can't trust this girl. Never. After almost an hour passes, the "beep-beep-beep" noise changes to a single, monotone "beeeeep". Marilee starts screaming and rolling around on the ground more frantically, trying desperately to get out of the ropes. Then the beeping stops. Marilee stops rolling and thrashing, and manages to sit up. "It didn't go off!" she exclaims. She looks down at the collar, which still has a red light lit up, and looks up at us, giggling. Then her head explodes and blood sprays everywhere.


	3. Chapter 3: Things Fall Apart

Sydni screams, Rachelle closes her eyes and flinches, Togru's eyebrows rise slightly, and I blink and jump backwards. A cannon fires. Marilee's headless body is still in a sitting position. It slowly falls forward and slumps over her tied-up legs. I feel hands on my shoulder and arm. "Get up Lucas, get up!" Sydni drags me away from the bloodied corpse. Rachelle crouches over the lake, grumbling to herself and cleaning her bloodstained jacket in the water. Togru, despite having blood all over him, goes back to his rock and sits. "Now we know what happens," he says. Sydni goes over next to Rachelle and starts cleaning off her jacket as well. I sit where Sydni dropped me and watch the hovercraft pick up Marilee's dead body. As the body is lifted into the belly of the flying ship, it slips out of the claws a bit. The claws catch it by the legs, and blood pours out of the holes from the explosion like a fountain. I turn away from the scene, trying my best to keep from throwing up.

"So what do we do now?" asks Sydni. "I say we go get more supplies from the Cornucopia," Rachelle responds. She pulls her soaked jacket out of the water and lays it on a rock. "Two of us should go, and two of us should stay here, to protect our base. How about the girls stay?" Rachelle says. Sydni and I look at each other, and then look at Rachelle and Togru. Rachelle is about a head taller than Sydni, and a lot more muscular. Togru is smaller than I am, but he's proven himself a fighter with his training score of 10. Despite me getting a 9, I don't feel like risking it. If Sydni and I are separated, and one of us dies, the other wouldn't have a good chance of living either. "I say we all go," I respond. "Look, there's three huge bloodstains over on the grass. No smart tribute would get near this place. Let's think for a second. Five tributes have died only two hours into the Games, and there was no bloodbath at the beginning of the Games. Everyone's probably hiding out in the forest over there." We all look over at the tall trees lining the horizon. "I agree," says Sydni. "If we go to the Cornucopia and get more supplies, we could kill anyone who's stupid enough to come here." Rachelle looks at Togru, and then quickly snaps her head back to us and says, "Fine." Sydni shoots me a wary look. I turn to Rachelle and smile, trying to hide my distrust. She smiles back, and says, "Ok, let's move!" Sydni tries to walk up next to me and say something, but I subtly wave her away. Not now, it's too dangerous.

We reach the Cornucopia after an hour. The tributes from 6 are scrounging around through the piles of weapons and supplies, trying to find things that are useful. The girl from 6 looks up and sees us approaching. She jumps up and runs past her partner back into the forest screaming, "Careers! Careers! Run!" Her partner looks up from his collection of weapons. He tries to get up from his knees, but he's unusually fat and it takes him a while. Rachelle, who had started to rush the ungainly boy, goes into hysterics and slumps over laughing, with her hands on her knees. The boy finally gets up and clumsily tries to run. He trips over a rock and falls to the ground, actually bouncing a few times before he comes to a rest. This is too much for Togru. He also starts laughing at the poor boy. Rachelle finally catches her breath and pulls out a knife. She stumbles towards the boy, still giggling, and prepares to stab the boy where he lies sprawled on the ground. Suddenly, just as Rachelle is about to make the fatal thrust, Sydni runs at her and tackles her to the ground. The knife flies out of her hand. Sydni jumps off the stunned Rachelle and turns to the terrified boy. "Just go," she says. The boy gets up and runs screaming into the forest. Rachelle jumps up and brushes the dirt off her jacket. Some blood remains on it, and dirt clumps stick to the dried patches. "What was that for? We could have killed another two tributes!" Sydni shyly puts her hands behind her back and puts her head down. "I don't know what I was…it seemed like…" "Like too many people have died?" Rachelle sneers. "Like there's been enough fighting for the day?" Sydni nods. Rachelle steps forward and shoves her over. I step forward in protest. Rachelle grabs her knife and points it at me. "Back off! Remember where we are." She pokes me with the knife with each word to drive home the point. I smack her hand away. Things are disintegrating quickly. Togru pulls out his bow and loads an arrow, pointing it towards the ground. Sydni clambers to her feet and wipes blood from her split-open forehead. She grabs a curved sword from the boy's pile of weapons that he left and twirls it in her right hand. With her other hand, she tosses me a spear. I catch it and point it at Rachelle. It's a standoff.

For a moment, no one moves. Then Togru aims his arrow at my head. Sydni spins and pulls her sword back to strike at Togru. Rachelle responds by aiming her knife at the back of Sydni's head. And I keep my spear leveled at Rachelle. More silence. Sydni finally speaks up. "That's enough." She drops her sword. Rachelle looks at her, and then slowly drops her arm holding the knife, without letting go of the blade. I drop the spear on the ground. Togru continues to point the arrow at me. I try to move to my left to get out of his range, but he follows me. "Togru, stop it," says Sydni. Togru's eyes are locked on mine. I try to move out of his path of fire, but he follows me again. "Togru, STOP!" yells Sydni. "No," he replies. "No, it's his turn to die now." I instinctively drop as Togru lets the arrow fly. It brushes through my thick curly hair and flies past my head. Rachelle watches with a surprisingly calm face as Togru loads another arrow. Suddenly, the curved sword slices through Togru's bow, snapping it in half. "I said STOP IT!" screams Sydni. Togru drops his quiver of arrows, and approaches Sydni guiltily. He stops about a foot from her. "I'm sorry," he croons. Then he grabs her by her hair and, lifting her off the ground, throws her brutishly into the side of the horn. She hits it with a smack and sinks down to the ground, moaning. She's out cold. I'm moving before I even realize I'm moving. Togru turns just in time for his face to meet my fist. He stumbles backward before recovering his footing. I rush at him again, and he grabs my fist in his hand. I swing my other arm and he catches that too. We grapple with each other like animals before I knee him in the chest. He lets go of my right fist to grab his chest and wince in pain. I swing at him again and hit him in the cheek. He spins comically and falls to the ground. "You made a mistake attacking me!" I yell. Wiping the blood from his face, Togru grins. "I take it the alliance is over? That's a shame." I take a step towards him before the cannon fires. Before I even realize what's happened, my collar starts beeping.


	4. Chapter 4: A Chain of Events

I spin and see Rachelle standing over Sydni. I rush at her, screaming, "WHAT DID YOU DO YOU LITTLE—" She turns and runs past me. I would have chased her, but the sight of Sydni has stopped me in my tracks. Her face has been carved off. It's literally lying on the ground in front of me. All that's left is a blob of bloodied muscle and—I have to look away. I spin again to see Rachelle and Togru running off towards the forest. Rachelle turns and yells, "See you tonight!" She points to the sky, then turns and runs after Togru. I stand there, stunned for a moment. Sydni's dead, and I have an hour…no…about fifty-eight minutes to kill someone else. It's surreal, knowing exactly how long you have left to live. I start to run until realize I'm weaponless. I rush over to the messy pile of weapons and dig through it until I find what I want. A whip and a curved knife. I start to get up and run again before I become conscious that I have no game plan. I can't just run into the forest without knowing what I'm gonna do, or who I'm gonna go after. My first instinct is to go after those…those beasts from 1. But I already know that they're planning on me chasing them. They're running as fast as they can and they're possibly hiding out somewhere. No, I need to go for someone else. Someone slower, who doesn't know that I'm in danger. I immediately look towards another section of the forest. The tributes from 6. I jump up and run into the forest. Fifty-five minutes left. I look back and watch the hovercraft pick up Sydni. She had been nice, and I had been attracted to her, but I couldn't waste a second saying goodbye. Otherwise, I'd be joining her.

I run into the forest and immediately see a trail of crumbs on the ground. Is that fat kid seriously eating on the run? Following the trail, I soon catch up to the tributes. I take caution to hang back so that the beeping noise isn't heard by the two of them. It turns out not to be a problem; the boy talks so loud that I can't even hear the collar myself. His ranting plus the amount of food he's shoving in his mouth while he talks is enough to drown out any noise. "So where are we going?" he asks the girl. Before she can turn around to answer him, he grabs a hunk of beef jerky out of his bag and chews it loudly with his mouth open. She looks at him, disgusted, and then whispers to him. "Qrew, you need to stay quiet. Those Careers might be tracking us." She's right, one of them is. While the boy talks about how scary the Careers were and how he thought he'd never get away, I climb a tree and silently move through the branches until I'm directly over the two tributes. They've stopped in the middle of the forest, because the boy needs to use the bathroom. The girl groans when he tells her, and says, "Make it fast." He nods and excitedly hops over behind the tree where I am perched. The girl wanders off away from the tree, muttering to herself about how this idiot is gonna get her killed. She has no idea. I realize that now is the perfect time to strike. I take my whip and fashion a noose out of it. Then I slowly drop it down to the boy's head while he looks down at the ground, finishing up his business.

"One shot, Lucas. One shot," I tell myself. I take a deep breath, and then slip the noose around the boy's head and pull. The last thing I hear the boy say is, "What—" before he is lifted into the air. I almost drop him right back on the ground; how can a kid from a poor district like 6 weigh so much. I quickly tie the whip to a strong branch and he stops falling. Now, besides my beeping, all I hear is the boy's gurgles. The branch begins to bend, so I get underneath it and keep it propped up with my body. "Qrew, do you hear something?" Oh no. The girl's coming back. "Qrew, I think I hear beeping. We gotta go." Qrew's body goes limp on the noose, and a cannon fires. My collar plays a miniature fanfare, then stops flashing and beeping. I feel around on it and find a knob that wasn't there before. Pushing it, I feel the collar snap open. It falls down and lands on the ground directly below the fat kid's body. "Qrew?" The girl comes into view now, collar beeping. She sees the collar on the ground, and looks up just as I spin to get behind another branch, out of sight. The branch snaps, and the plump corpse falls down to the ground, slamming into the girl and pinning her to the ground. The branch follows close behind, and bounces off the body of Qrew. I can hear the girl's muffled screams; she's jammed between her dead partner and the ground. I peek over the edge to watch her try to get out. One arm and two legs flail ferociously from underneath Qrew. I would be lying if I didn't say that every living inch of me wanted to go roll the dead boy off her and save her life. Reality grabbed that notion out of the sky and crushed it between its hateful claws; she'd just go after the first tribute she saw, which would be me. Soon, the screams coming from beneath the body start to fade away, and the flailing becomes more relaxed. Then, as the girl loses the last of her reserves of oxygen, she stops moving all together. Two minutes later, a cannon fires.

I climb down the tree quickly; my whip is still tied to the boy's neck, and I need it back. I get down just as the birds go silent above me. The hovercraft is here. I waste no time in untying the whip from the branch. I then loosen the noose from the boy's neck and run away from the bodies. I did it. I'm safe. I'm alive. I watch the hovercraft pick up Qrew. Parts of his fat body stick out from between the claws that hold him up. He disappears into the dark underbelly of the ship. The claw comes back for the girl. I get a glimpse of the almost flattened redhead before she too vanishes into the craft. Then it departs, and bird noises return to the forest. I climb up into a tree and sit on a branch with good foliage cover. I sit there until the last of the sun slips under the horizon, painting the sky black. No stars. The anthem replaces the raven-like blackness, forcing me to shield my eyes for a moment. The monotonous music plays, it's ever-repeating "da-da-da-daa-daa-daa-daa-da-duh-duh-duhn-duhn-duhn-duhn-da-daa-daa-daaaaa" ringing in my ears. Then the faces start to show up.

First is Sydni. The ten seconds that her beautiful features sit pasted onto the sky feel like an hour to me. I could have saved her. I didn't have to kill anyone today. She disappears at the peak of my misery, to be replaced by Marilee. After her comes Jude, the boy from 4 who had been the one to crack jokes at the Career lunch table in the Training Center and make us all forget for the moment where we were. Following him is the girl from 6 and Qrew. Seeing them only makes me think of Sydni, so I look away until I hear the "blip" that signals the appearance of another face. It's the boy from 8, the peacemaker, the pacifist, and ironically, the one who died first. Following him is the girl from 8, whose fate was decided for her by her partner's ideas. Then the boy and girl from 12 are shown. The girl from 12 looks terrified even in her tribute photo. I'm tempted to mourn all of my dead friends and the innocent victims. Reality slaps me across the face and reminds me that in order for me to live, everyone else must die. Fourteen tributes to go, and I'll get out of here.


	5. Chapter 5: The First Dream

Nothing to do now but sleep. I wrap the whip around me and tie myself to the thick branch I'm lying on, in case I fall out. Then I close my eyes and slip into a deep sleep.

_"All District 2 children to the central plaza! District 2 children to the plaza immediately!" Where am I? The answer quickly becomes clear. The scenic mountains, the chilled yet refreshing air; how could I have not known? I'm home. But how? Looking across the wide plaza square, I can see hundreds, no, thousands of children milling around. Something in my head tells me to look to my left, and as I do, I see Sydni standing alone. Looking for someone. Me. I start to move towards her, but before I can reach her, her eyes light up and she runs towards a boy standing far off to my right. He looks familiar. "Lucas!" Sydni yells. The boy jerks his head up, and it becomes clear that he is me. Just as I'm beginning to realize what's happening, a child runs right through my chest. A dream. The other Lucas and Sydni hug, and then after a quick chat and a kiss, head off to their age groups for the reaping. I stand where I am as children rush past and through me. Because I know what will soon happen._

_District 2's reaping is very different from the other districts. Most children in our district long desperately to be in the Games as soon as they turn twelve. For this reason, the selection process begins in the classrooms with a host of miniature reapings. Students place a slip of paper with their name on it into a smaller bowl on their teacher's desk. From this bowl, the teacher then picks ten names without telling the children who has been selected. Those ten names are written down and sent to the Reaping Committee of District 2, a collection of secretaries who keep records of every child in District 2. Each of us has a file, detailing our training and physical attributes. If your name is selected in the miniature reaping, you receive a letter to your house the following day asking you to report to the plaza on Reaping Day. Even then, there are still thousands of children to choose from for the main event, since District 2 is the largest out of the twelve. The Reaping Committee stations one of their secretaries at each age group, making sure un-reaped children don't sneak in. I watch Sydni check into the sixteen-year-old girl's section, and then watch myself check into the seventeen-year-old boy's section. After about five minutes of waiting, the reaping begins._

_Fiora Hesquip, District 2's escort, bounds up the stage. All conversation stops and everyone begins to cheer as Fiora grabs the microphone. "Hello everyone, welcome to District 2's 100th reaping!" she screams. The crowd screams back in return, and Fiora feigns surprise. "My my! Sounds like you're all excited. In that case, we'll skip the formalities and get right to it. Ladies first!" The girls all scream and shove each other as Fiora climbs the ladder propped up against the girl's bowl on the right side of the stage. She reaches the top, and jumps right into the bowl. Slips of paper fly everywhere as Fiora slips into the ocean of names. The papers in the bowl swish around as the crowd cheers. A bell rings somewhere, and attendants tip the ladder into the bowl. Fiora climbs out of the bowl and jumps back down to the stage floor. She lands expertly on the provided inflatable air mattress. District 2's reaping isn't a chore. It's a show. Fiora rushes back over to the microphone, looking everything but dazed. "Let's see…this one!" She plucks one of the many paper strips out of her indigo, colored hair. Shaking her head vigorously, she lets the other slips fall to the stage floor. The crowd's screams and cheers silence as Fiora clears her throat and reads Sydni's name off the slip. The girl's section groans in unison, and I watch Sydni push her way towards the stage. She climbs the stairs, looking confident. I decide to follow her onto the stage, and walk through the crowd until I'm on the stage as well. Sydni strolls over to Fiora, shakes her hand, and sits in one of the two chairs on the stage. "Volunteers?" asks Fiora. Sydni shakes her head, and more grumbling come from the girl's section I watch as Fiora repeats the process for the boys. In about one minute, the other Lucas is sitting next to Sydni on stage. "Volunteers?" asks Fiora to me. I watch myself hesitate. I remember what i had been thinking at the time. If I say yes, I get off the stage and hope that Sydni comes home. This seems like it would be the logical answer, but taking a volunteer and skipping out on the Games is viewed as dishonorable to your family name. Saying no would save my family's reputation, but would either see the end of Sydni or me. Or both of us. So which would I pick? Sydni or my family's name? It was an easy choice. I shook my head and looked forward in confidence as the crowd below me spewed out grumbles and screamed in rage, as they would not be participating this year._

_Fiora turns to the crowd. "Settle down, settle down, everyone. Next year will be here sooner than you think! For now, it's time to introduce this year's mentors!" Fiora turns towards the left side of the stage, looking past the giant bowl. "The District 2 girl mentor will be…Desarei!" A woman in her late 50s with black and gray hair climbs the stage and moves to stand behind Sydni. I've heard of her, and seen her on TV sometimes, but I wasn't even born when she won her Games. "The District 2 boy mentor is…Cato!" A burly man in his late 40s stomps his way up to where the other Lucas sits. I've seen him on TV before as well. He won his Games the year before the last quell. The 74th to be exact. He stands behind Lucas on the stage. Fiora makes a waving gesture and says, "These Games will be the best yet! Let's give our soon-to-be victors a hand!" The audience claps and_ I wake up.


	6. Chapter 6: A Chance Encounter

The sun shines through the leaves of the tree that I lie in. I'm tempted to stay here until my stomach growls ferociously. With all the excitement of yesterday's events, I forgot to eat. I decide to climb down and head to the Cornucopia. Some kind of food has to be left there. As I walk through the forest, I can't help but feel very alone. Sydni's gone, the Career pack is either dead or out to kill me, and as far as I know, I'm the only tribute who survived the hour countdown after their district partner died. The walk seems to take hours, even though the Cornucopia can't be more than thirty minutes away. Soon, I see the top of the golden horn glinting in the sun. My stomach grumbles loudly, and I run to the horn as fast as I can. I don't hear them talking until I've already rounded the horn. A boy and girl, the ones from 3. They jump up and move back towards a small pile of weapons.

"Stay away!" shrieks the girl. I drop the whip and sword I'm holding and back up. Both the boy and girl look confused. "Are you serious?" asks the boy. "Xavier, his collar!" whispers the girl loudly. The boy looks at me in wonder. "How did you get yours off?" "Didn't you see in the sky?" I ask them. "No," says the girl, "We were hiding and we fell asleep. Missed everything. Who died yesterday? Other than the tributes from 8." I motion for them to sit down, and they follow suit. I slump onto the ground, and grab a backpack. As I rummage through it, looking for food, I tell them what happened the previous day. "The tributes from 1 killed the boy from 12. Marilee from 4 killed the girl. Then Marilee's partner was killed, and her collar started beeping. She tried to kill us, but we stopped her, tied her up, and waited to see what would happen. After an hour of beeping, your head explodes." The girl covers her mouth and lets out a little squeak. I find a small granola bar in the bottom of the backpack and shove the whole thing into my mouth before I continue with the story. "After that, the tributes from 1 tried to kill the boy from 6. My partner tried to stop them, and they ended up killing her. I had no choice but to kill the boy from 6. His partner died soon after." I look up from the backpack to see that the girl and boy are both holding knives and are both backed up against the golden horn, away from me. "Take what you need and leave now," says the girl. She would have sounded more menacing if her voice hadn't cracked. "Fine," I snap. I rummage through a few backpacks and get a decent amount of supplies, and then head back towards the forest without even looking back. Stupid tributes, they'll probably be dead before nightfall.

I make it back to the tree I slept in the previous night and climb up. There's not much to do. There's no point in going hunting for tributes right now; they'll die off soon enough. Why overexert myself? I lounge in the tree for a few hours, whittling away into the tree trunk with a sharp knife.

The loud voice that booms from across the forest catches me off guard; I almost fall out of the tree. Apparently, someone has found a megaphone of some sort. "Tributes! This is Flora from District 11! My partner and I would ask that you join us by the Cornucopia tomorrow for a philosophical discussion. It seems that the shockwave of deaths has stopped for now. We hope you join us. Unarmed, of course. Until then…" The megaphone clicks and there is silence again. "Those idiots," I think. What do they hope to gain from their little meeting? Do they honestly think we can all declare a ceasefire and live the rest of our lives in this arena? No, the Gamemakers wouldn't allow it. My guess is that Rachelle and Togru will show up and butcher everyone anyways. They seem to be the only tributes taking these Games seriously.

Sun up, sun down. No cannons means no deaths; everyone must be hiding out. After the anthem finishes playing out, I close my eyes and sleep. And dream as well.


	7. Chapter 7: The Second Dream

_Back to the past. This time I'm actually myself, standing in the doorway of the Training Center with Sydni. We are the last to arrive; all twenty-two other kids are sitting in the center of the gym. We join them silently, slipping in next to Marilee and Jude from 4. Giselle, the Head Trainer, tells us the rules and introduces each station. She finishes by saying, "All right, off you go!" in her motherly voice. We Careers all jump up quickly and head over to the weapons stations. I drift around and end up at the sword station with Rachelle and the boy from 10. While I chop dummies to pieces, I chat with Rachelle; we swap tips on sword technique. "If you use a two-handed sword, you'll have more control and blocking power," says Rachelle. "But I personally prefer two swords over one. More steel equals more power," she says nonchalantly as she butchers a stuffed dummy. The boy from 10 standing next to us inexpertly stabs and slices at his dummy. Rachelle watches him for a while, snickering under her breath. The boy turns to face her. "Is there a problem?" he growls. Rachelle laughs. "The only problem is that you won't make it a single day in the arena. But that's your problem, not mine. Although I could be the one to finish you off." The boy's face reddens, and he drops the sword and heads over to the snare station. "District 10 hasn't won the games for seventeen years," says Rachelle to me. "And I doubt these Games will be any different." She turns to face a new dummy and beheads it in one clean stroke._

_After a while, I head over to the shooting weapons station. Marilee is already there, pointing a semi-automatic gun at some moving targets about 20 yards away. I stand next to the blonde-haired girl and watch her shoot for a while. "Guns aren't usually available in the Games. It makes them go by too quickly, especially if you're good," quips Marilee in her singsong voice as she loads another clip into her gun. "But they can cause quite a mess if you hit an artery or a vein, and the Capitol loves a little bloodshed. Who knows, they might change their minds this year. And if they do, I think we both know who's gonna win" She giggles sweetly and shoots six bullets right into the bull's-eye of a target. I practice shooting for a while. It's almost second nature to me: gun training was one of the first things I learned as a child in District 2. But Marilee is good. For every target I hit, she hits three. As I walk away from the station, I can't help but wonder how someone so sweet could be so deadly._

_I see Togru sitting at the chemicals station, so I go over to join him. I watch him work in silence, mixing different chemicals together in different vials. "My father is a chemist," Togru explains. He picks up a white cube with his tongs and holds it up to me. "Pure sodium. Not very deadly by itself. But mix it with water and you'll get a violent explosion." I'm impressed with his knowledge. The instructor teaches me how to make different poisons and healing mixtures. Togru is able to create an acid so powerful that it melts right through a stainless steel sword. Maybe I pegged Togru completely wrong. Who else but him could stab you with a spear then pour a homemade concoction of poison into your wounds?_

_I move around to a few other stations, ending up at the archery station with Jude from 4. He's not even shooting; he's sitting on the floor laughing at the tributes from seven and eleven trying to learn how to shoot. It's at this point that I remember my mentor Cato's words. "Do something that will make them fear you. Fear is your biggest weapon. If they think you can kill them, they're probably right." I walk up to the girl from seven, grab her bow out of her hands, aim my arrow, shoot a bull's-eye into the standing target, and hand the bow back to the shocked girl. Altogether, it takes less than five seconds. Strolling away, I hear the tributes whispering to each other. I also hear Jude laughing at them. "You should see the looks on your faces! Is that how you're going to look when he kills you?" I smile, truly happy for the first time in this whole experience._

_Now the dream flashes forward to lunchtime, with all the Careers sitting together at their square table, two chairs on each side. Rachelle and Togru are making a game plan, deciding which tribute they want to kill first. "I call the boy from six," whispers Rachelle, pointing to the chubby boy sitting two tables away from us. "Not if I get him first," replies Togru. Both laugh loudly. Jude and Marilee chat with each other about the appearance of the tributes. "Did you see the girl from three?" squeaks Marilee. "Yeah," replies Jude, "I wonder if she's eaten anything in the past year!" The two snicker as they watch the girl and her partner chow down on their food. "Slow down, kids!" yells Jude. "Savor the taste of food while you can, before I kill you!" Sydni chokes on her food, as do eighteen other tributes at their tables. An eerie silence fills the room. Then the boy from eight, who is sitting at the table closest to us, stands up and begins dragging his table away from ours. His partner helps him move chairs, and they end up sitting next to the tributes from nine. The girl from three stands up and drags her table away as well. Soon, every tribute has followed suit and made one giant circle of tables as far away from ours as possible. The unnatural silence persists, and the effects have clearly disconcerted our happy group of Careers. Alienation: All Careers face this battle before the Games. Jude and Marilee poke at their food, occasionally glancing over their shoulders at the girl from three. Sydni constantly stares across the table at the eighteen tributes all sitting together. Rachelle stares at her lap stoically, never once blinking. Only Togru seems unaffected, eating his meal as if nothing had happened. I try to eat, but a strange feeling in my stomach tells me that whatever I eat will just come right back up._

_I hear a chair next to me move, and I watch as Sydni stands up, holding her tray in one hand, and drags her chair over to the eighteen others. They hear the disturbance and stop their chatter to watch her. She stops short at the edge of their table and, smiling sweetly, waits for them to make room for her. No one does. Slowly but surely, Sydni's smiling face morphs into visible frustration. Then she explodes. "You stupid second-rate tributes, you're as stuck in your discriminatory ways as we are!" She snatches a knife off her tray and points it menacingly at the nearest tributes. "I'll kill you all slowly and painfully, and your partners will be forced to stare at your dead, broken bodies as their timers tick away!" Sydni turns and throws the knife into the chrome-colored wall, which turns out to be only wood paneling with wallpaper. The knife sticks in up to its shiny hilt. As Sydni turns and drags her chair back to our table, the girl from twelve begins to cry. Then the girl's cry becomes distorted. It starts to sound more avian in nature, like a_ bird.


	8. Chapter 8: The Meeting

The squawks and caws from the birds above me are loud and piercing in nature; I'm up right away. I decide to climb down the tree quickly; if they're muttations, I'll stand a better chance on the ground. I quickly pack up my things into my backpack and shimmy down the tree. I know I've had better ideas, but I'm dying to go to the Cornucopia. The whole meeting will probably turn into a bloodbath, which might be the reason I want to go. I decide that I have nothing better to do, so I start walking to the Cornucopia, eating some dried beef and drinking some water as I go.

I stop walking as soon as the Cornucopia comes in view and climb a tree. There I place my camo-green backpack on a branch; no weapons allowed at this meeting doesn't mean I can't keep some security nearby. I scale down the tree and walk over to the Cornucopia; I can see that many tributes have already gathered. The girl and boy from 11 are in the middle of a large semicircle of kids. It looks like every tribute except for Togru and Rachelle has arrived, which makes a total of twelve. A girl, I believe she's from 5, sees me approaching and screams, "Career!" All the kids turn around to face me, obvious fear emanating from their faces. I put my hands up and smile. "Relax everyone," I say, "I only kill when there's valid reason for it." A few tributes seem to calm down, but many remain wary of my presence. "You killed the tributes from 6!" cries a girl. "District 3 told us!" yells another boy. Before I can even respond, the girl from 11, Flora, is yelling through her megaphone. "Calm down everyone! If he came here unarmed he's a friend. Besides, the tributes from 10 killed the boy from 4, and we accepted them." Everyone settles down almost instantly. I can't help but stare at the boy from 10. This small, weak tribute who couldn't use a sword...how had he done it? "Where'd you get that megaphone?" asks Xavier, the boy from 3. "Sponsor gift," replies the tall brown-haired girl from 10, before Flora can answer the question. Flora motions for the group to sit down. "Let's talk," she quips.

The group has hardly sat down when people begin throwing questions at me. "Is the Career pack still active?" "Where's your collar?" "What happens when our partner dies and time runs out?" "Where are the tributes from 1?" I answer these questions as best as I can. No, the Career pack is dissolved, considering there are only three of us left. My collar was deactivated and fell off my neck after I killed the boy from 6. Your head explodes when your collar stops beeping. I don't know where they are, but if they were here someone would already be dead. Flora interrupts the stream of questions. "Enough. Flax and I have been thinking," she says, motioning to her partner from 11. "We agree that we should start moving together as a pack. We take out the tributes from 1, and after that we try and stay alive through whatever the Capitol throws at us." The tributes murmur amongst each other. "What happens if one of us dies?" asks the girl from 5. "Yeah, won't our partners just try to kill someone else?" inquires Xavier from three. Flora sighs. "That's why we need to convene right now. We'd need to all agree that if our partner dies, we would surrender and wait for—" The tributes explode. "What?" "That's ridiculous!" "Look at what happened to the tributes from 8!" Flora, by the look on her face, clearly wasn't expecting this kind of reaction to her simple suggestion. As the screaming continues, I raise my hand, and wait for the frenzied chattering to stop. Slowly but surely, silence returns as the tributes wait for the wise Career from 2 to speak. I take a quick but deep breath, and voice my opinion. "People are never readable. Look at the past ninety-nine years of Games. The innocent tributes are the first to go. All that's left are those who would kill their partner to live." The tributes look around at each other. They know it's true. "Flora, if your partner died, and I was standing next to you, wouldn't you kill me without a single thought?" I ask. "Yes," she responds immediately. I wasn't expecting that answer from her at all. A few tributes gasp. Flora whips around to face them. "What? He doesn't have anyone linked to him! Killing him would be…" Flora stops talking, and I suddenly know exactly what she's thinking. I'm already up and running as she screams, "Grab him!"

Hands reach for my ankles, but I dodge and jump over them, heading for the forest. The tree, which tree was it? I'm miles faster than any of the tributes, but I can hear them behind me, their hasty footsteps matching the rapid beating in my chest. I find the tree and start climbing as fast as I can. I disappear into the canopy just as the first tribute comes into view on the ground. I press back against the trunk, hoping with every fiber in me that they keep moving. My hopes add up to nothing as I hear someone below scream, "Stop!" The footsteps fade as all the tributes stop right under the tree I'm hiding in. I recognize the voice of the girl from 3. "Why are we chasing this kid?" "Because," says Flora, "he's our scapegoat. If we catch him and hold him hostage, we can kill him if one of our partners dies. The chain of death will stop, and the partner-less tribute will take his place as the scapegoat. We can beat the Capitol's system!" I press back into the trunk as hard as I can. How low could these kids sink? I listen to the tributes speak their approval of Flora's brilliant plan. She splits them up, telling tributes that can climb trees to do so. At dusk, they are to meet up at the Cornucopia. In a few minutes, the tributes leave the area.

My pounding heart is telling me to stay in the tree, be safe. But my brain tells me I need to leave. I'm still in view of the Cornucopia. Who knows if I'll ever be able to leave this tree if I don't leave now? I wait a few more minutes, then swiftly climb down the tree and hit the ground. I orient myself, and run directly away from the Cornucopia. I only take a few steps when I hear voices and am forced to duck behind a tree. Four tributes sprint by, heading towards the Cornucopia. I wait until they are out of sight, and then run in the direction they came from. For about two hours, I run through the giant forest, stopping to hide behind bushes and trees whenever I hear the slightest noise. I don't run into any other tributes, but by the time I finally decide to climb into a tree and wait out the rest of the day, I'm jumpy and scared. I was used to the idea of every tribute trying to kill me, but now they're all going for me personally. And with Sydni dead, I'm on my own.


	9. Chapter 9: The Third Dream

The sun is at the top of the sky; it must be around noon. By the time it sinks below the horizon, I'm still shaking. The arena is starting to get colder at night; sleep does not come easily. The anthem shows no deaths. Below me, on the forest floor, torch-bearing tributes can be seen making their way back to the Cornucopia. I know they can't see me, but I still feel so exposed, even in the branches of my tree. "If you didn't know how to climb trees," I muse to myself, "you would be captured, or dead." A clank next to me indicates that I've received my first sponsor gift. I smell the food before I can even open the lid. A full meal lies before me. Chicken, biscuits, and a small flask of gravy. I dig in, finally realizing how hungry I am. Sleep doesn't come easily; I spend most of the night listening to the leaves of the tree brushing together in the wind. The smallest noise makes me reflexively grip the knife I hold in my hand tighter. I will not die in a tree. Or in this arena, for that matter. Soon, exhaustion wins out over fear, and I drift into another dream.

_It's a few hours after the tribute interviews. Sydni and I are sitting with our mentors in the TV room of our suite, watching the recaps of the interviews. There is total silence as we watch the different tributes. The girl from 5 is loud and shows no signs of shutting up. She continues talking even after the buzzer sounds and Mordecai, the host of the Games, is forced to herd her off the stage himself. The boy from 5 never looks up from his lap. He answers the questions quickly and simply; he appears to want to be anywhere except on that stage. "He's cute," Sydni says as the boy from 7 mounts the stage. "Quiet!" snaps Deserai in her raspy voice. "Your job is to kill him, not talk about his eyes or hair!" Sydni crosses her arms and sinks back into the couch. Deserai is a good mentor; she's mentored five of the victors in our district. Her only fault is a serious lack of emotion, probably brought on by years of watching kids kill each other. The girl from 7 is up next. She's tall and you can see how tight the skin is around her cheekbones. Most districts don't get enough food, apparently. Cato must be reading my thoughts, because his next comment is on the importance of food. "These tributes have one advantage over you: they know what true hunger is. You have eaten well your whole lives. But once you get into the arena, you will realize that three meals a day just isn't going to happen. Ration out whatever food you have." The girl from 9 looks awful. Her pale skin still shows up underneath her makeup, and she looks the weakest and frailest out of all the tributes. It's only after the girl from 10 mounts the stage that Cato notices I've been staring at Sydni for a while. He grabs my arm forcefully and pulls me off the couch. Sydni and Deserai watch dumbfounded as Cato drags me out into the hallway. He slams me up against a wall and says, "Don't you dare fall in love, boy. Don't you dare." He pauses, apparently searching for more words, but no more come. A single tear starts to form in his right eye, but he wipes it away before it can fall. He lets his hands drop off my shoulders and fall to his sides. Then he shuffles past me back into the TV room. I remember hearing about Cato's games. The girl from his district…Clove. That was her name. I stare after Cato, realizing that even the strongest competitor in the Games has a soft spot. Spot._ Spotted.

"Spotted him! I've spotted him!" The voice reaches my ears long before I realize what it means. When I finally do understand, I lean over the side of the tree to see a group of the tributes that have been hunting me standing underneath the tree. The girl from 5, the one who wouldn't shut up, is pointing and exclaiming loudly, "There he is! There he is!" I move back quickly and pull out a knife from my backpack. This is going to turn into a fight. But before I can make a plan, I hear branches rustle behind me. I whip around quickly, just in time to see the boy from 7 swinging a heavy stick at my head. Everything goes very black very quickly.


	10. Chapter 10: Introducing Heather

**At this point in the story, the POV will switch to the girl from 10. All other switches will be made clear through horizontal rulers like the one below.**

* * *

><p>We finally got him out of the tree. It took lots of tributes, and a lot of time, but we were able to figure out how to drop him onto different branches until we got him to the ground. Xavier and Quinn from 3 ran to get Flora and Flax back at the Cornucopia, and now we're all back at the tree. "We should tie him up before he wakes up," says Flora, who has become our unofficial leader in the alliance. Someone comes up with some rope from their backpack, and in a few minutes, he's secured. The boy from 7, Kent, is tasked with pulling him back to the Cornucopia. We all begin the hour-long trip back to our base at the golden horn. About halfway through, he wakes up. "Wha…what's going on?" He's groggy from the blow Kent gave him up in the tree. Kent stops pulling him. I run over to the boy's body and kneel down. He looks at me through glazed eyes. "Ssshh…everything's ok. You're safe," I say. Before he can get out a word, a stick slams down on his forehead and he's out again. "Kent!" I exclaim. "What?" he responds. "He's gonna die eventually!" With that, Kent picks up the rope and starts dragging the boy's body across the grass again. I follow behind them silently. "Cheer up," says Brion, my partner who walks next to me. "We got the boy! We're safe now." I turn to face him. "No we're not. If I die and they kill him, you take his place. Apparently no one but me has thought that far ahead yet." Brion's eyes widen in realization, and his face gains a somber expression. "So what do we do?" he asks. "Simple," I reply softly. "We're leaving tonight."<p>

The boy woke up as soon as we reached the Cornucopia. I was able to convince Kent and Flora not to knock him out again and instead to put him in the Cornucopia itself. Flora begins to assign people guard duty. I silently pray that she assigns Brion and me to a night shift. Kai and Trey from 5 are given the first shift. They pick up their weapons and move to either side of the dark opening of the horn. Inside, the boy can be heard screaming, "I'll kill you! I'll kill you all!" Flora groans loudly. "Kent, go knock him out, please." Before Kent stands up, I protest. "No! If you knock him out again he'll just be more upset when he wakes up, and he'll yell more. Just leave him alone, and he'll stop." Flora smirks. "Well then, for your sake I hope he does shut up. You get the night shift. All night." "Yes!" I scream in my head as I feign a sigh of disappointment. Next to me, Brion smiles but quickly drops his head down. Flora turns away from us to talk to Flax, her partner. Flax is tall, lanky, and quiet. He only talks to Flora. I don't trust either of them, even if the other tributes do. I nudge Brion. "Let's gather food and supplies. Don't look too obvious. Only take enough to keep us supplied for a few days." Brion nods and goes off to pack a backpack. I start to make one of my own. I grab a small sword and jam the hilt into my backpack so that the sharp blade sticks out. Then I go to grab some foodstuffs from the food pile.

"Gamemakers haven't done much yet." I jump at the voice and spin around. "Oh, hi Eve," I say to the sickly girl from 9. Eve's face is stoic, almost dead. "The tributes from 1 are still out there too," she says through her pale lips. "I hope I'm not the first to go." Eve then goes into a fit of coughs and has to sit down. I scoot over to her. "What did you say you have again?" I ask. "Cancer. Lung cancer," she responds. "It's treatable with the Capitol's medicine, but we can't afford medication for it at home." She coughs again. "The doctors gave me about six months to live, so being here only makes the end come faster. That's why I volunteered, you know?" She starts coughing once again, and has to catch her breath before she continues. "If I somehow win the Games, I'll have enough money for treatment." I smile at the young girl, all the while thinking in the back of my head how she'll get no pity from the other tributes, especially Flora and the tributes from 1. Eve looks at me with sunken eyes and says, "So, Brion killed the boy from 4. How'd that happen?" I look away from her for a moment, recollecting. "We were the only tributes to hang around the horn after the tributes scattered. The girl from 8 ran after Flora and Flax, but they were too fast. Apparently, somewhere in between them and the Cornucopia, she changed plans and started back. She ran into the boy from 4, and chased him towards us. We were scavenging for supplies when we heard them coming. The boy broke through the forest and turned around when he heard her scream. That's when she died, somewhere in the trees. The boy turned and saw us. Then he started making fun of us! Talking about how ugly I was and how stupid and short my partner looked. Fate would have it that as he walked towards us, he would trip over a rock and break his ankle. He started screaming and rolling around on the ground in pain. Then Brion snapped. He grabbed a sword, ran over, and beheaded him before I could even stop him." I turn back to Eve, whose mouth hangs open. "Wow," she says finally before she starts coughing again. Poor girl. "Why don't you go lie down for a while?" I say. "You need to be ready for when the Gamemakers strike." Eve nods and gets up. She wanders off, murmuring to herself about wanting a blanket. I finish packing and find Brion, who has already prepared his things. "Let's get some rest," I say. "We'll need all our energy tonight."


	11. Chapter 11: A New Alliance

It takes a while, but I'm finally able to close my eyes against the afternoon sun and drown out the noise from the other tributes. Soon, I'm being nudged awake. "Your turn to guard," says Xavier from 3. I yawn and sit up, stretching out my limbs. Then I stand up and head over to the horn. Brion's already there, with the two backpacks. "Is anyone awake?" I whisper. "Just the tributes from 3, but they should be asleep soon. We'll leave after that." I nod and sit down next to him. Brion looks over his shoulder into the mouth of the horn. "He's awfully quiet in there." I look back as well. "He's probably sleeping," I respond. "No, I'm awake," the boy responds. I can't help but let out a little gasp; I have to remind myself that he's tied up and that he can't hurt me. "So, you two are planning on leaving?" the boy asks. "What makes you think that?" snaps Brion. The boy chuckles softly. "You just said you would leave after everyone falls asleep." I give Brion a look, and his head droops a bit. "Oh yeah," he whispers.

I hear a noise coming from inside the horn, and suddenly he's right at the opening, scooting forward little by little. Brion grabs a knife from his pocket and points it at the boy. "Don't you come any closer, or I'll kill you right now." The boy laughs softly. "No you won't. I'm your insurance policy. You kill me and they'll kill you." Brion doesn't budge. "I said don't come any closer." The boy finally stops. There is silence for a moment as we observe each other. The boy is obviously well-built, judging from the way the ropes tied to his arms almost disappear under the muscle. He has straight brown hair that swoops down over one of his eyes; I never noticed their color before, and I can't tell what they are in the dim moonlight. "So, you're planning on getting out of the alliance while you can. I can't blame you," says the boy. "When I eventually die, someone else will take my place. And once people realize it might be them, they'll still try to kill people to stop it from happening." He laughs, and then stares directly at me. Now I can see; his eyes are a deep brown, like the mane of my horse back in district 10. The boy speaks again. "So here's the deal. When you leave, you're going to untie me. I promise not to kill you, and we go our separate ways. If you don't, I'll scream when you leave and alert everyone. They'll kill both of you, and everything will be all peaceful again." I groan aloud; we have no choice. "Fine," I say through clenched teeth. The boy smiles and backs up into the horn, hiding in the shadows once again.

One hour later, Brion stands up and checks to see if everyone's asleep. When he reports back and says that we're all clear, I turn and whisper into the horn. "Ready to go?" The boy scoots forward eagerly. Brion hands me his knife, and I turn to face the boy. "If you try to hurt me at all, I will scream so loud that the tributes from 1 will hear me, wherever they are. Don't even think about it." The boy nods and gestures to his legs. I take the knife and get to work. A few minutes later, I cut the last rope from his arm. The boy stands up and stretches out his arms and legs. He turns to me and brushes the hair away from his eyes. "A pleasure doing business with you," he whispers. Then he turns, grabs a backpack from next to a sleeping tribute, and starts walking towards the forest. "Come with us." The words escape my mouth before I even know I've said them. The boy stops and turns to face me. "What did you say?" "Yeah, did I hear you correctly?" asks Brion. I sigh, and repeat my invitation. "Come with us." The boy stands in front of me looking completely bewildered. Then he answers. "I don't make alliances." "This wouldn't be an alliance. Or at least not one like this. You could leave whenever you wanted to," I say. "I just don't want to see you captured again." The boy takes a menacing step forward. "I won't be captured again!" he whispers forcefully. I still sense the hesitance in his voice. "You're the only tribute on your own. Don't you want someone you can rely on?" I ask. I extend my hand forward. The boy stares at it warily. Slowly but surely, his hand extends forward until it meets mine in a handshake. "All right," he says. Then the three of us walk off together towards the forest, leaving the camp behind.

It's quiet as we enter the forest. The boy reaches into his backpack and pulls out a flashlight. Light illuminates the dark grove of trees ahead of us, as well as the bats that hang from them. With a few screeches and squeals, they fly up into the branches of some higher trees. I love most animals, but I cannot stand bats. I don't like most nocturnal animals; you can never see what they look like unless they're gnawing at your face. The boy turns to me abruptly. "You got a name?"


	12. Chapter 12: Trust

"It's Heather," says the girl nonchalantly. I turn to the boy walking next to me. "What's yours?" I ask. "Brion," he snaps quickly. Then he speeds up and moves to the front of our group, hacking at branches with his knife. "Don't be bothered by him," says the girl. I turn to look at her. She's tying her hair up into a ponytail, using a small strand of the rope I was tied up with. "He doesn't trust Careers. But I can tell you're different than them." She smiles at me, and then moves forward to catch up with Brion. "Am I different?" I think to myself. I've killed two tributes already. To stay alive of course. But their lives shouldn't have been mine to take. I think about Sydni, and how she changed that day in the lunchroom of the Training Center. Sydni was the only one of us who was truly good, and her kindness got her killed. "Is it possible to win the Games and still be a good person?" I ask myself.

I bump into Heather's back; I hadn't realized that she and Brion had stopped. "Turn off the flashlight," she whispers. "What?" "Turn off the flashlight!" she says in a more intense voice. I obey her, and she pulls Brion and me behind a tree. "Don't make a sound," she whispers. I'm about to ask why when I hear someone approaching. No, not someone, something. The footsteps get closer and closer. Whatever it is, I can tell it has four feet, from the repetition of the steps. Then the smell hits me. I have personally never smelled anything more foul and repulsive in my entire life. Heather has both her hands clamped over her mouth and nose, and Brion is slumped down, hands clenched together tightly in a silent prayer. The beast passes by our tree. All I can see is one giant spiked shadow impressed against the grey-colored trees facing me. The smell is awful; I can hardly breathe. Then the shadow ends in a tail, and the creature is gone.

We wait in silence for a few more minutes until the smell is gone. Then Heather moves away from the tree and I know it's safe. "They brought the basilisk back," she says. "What's a basilisk?" asks Brion. The name rings a bell, and I start to remember small details about the creature as Heather explains it to Brion. "The basilisk is a muttation," says Heather. "It was first introduced in the 88th Games, I think." I shake my head. "It was the 86th Games, remember? The snowy forest?" Heather nods. "Yes, that's right." She turns back to Brion. You're thirteen, right? You would have only been one or two that year. The basilisk has the face and body of a lizard, and the legs and teeth of a lion. Its whole body is covered in sharp scales that change color based on its environment, and the can't be pierced with a spear or a sword." I remember watching a girl try to charge the beast, only to be snapped up into its jaws. "It only has one weak spot, and that's in the eye. The eyes are small and beady, but it stores poison sacs right behind it. Did I mention it spits acid?" Brion shakes his head. The kid looks petrified. "Well," says Heather, "it does, so watch out. Basically, avoid the basilisk at all costs." "Sounds good," says Brion. We stand up and start walking again, away from where the basilisk was headed. "Can you climb trees?" I ask. "Yes," both of them respond quickly. "Then let's walk until dawn and climb a tree. We can hide out until night, and then—" "No," interrupts Heather, "the trees were the first place we looked for you. Isn't there somewhere else we can go in the arena?" And suddenly I know where we must go.

It takes a few hours, but eventually we reach the lake where the tributes from 12 and Marilee died on the first day. I kneel down to scoop up some water in my hands and drink it. "Wait!" screams Heather. She pulls out a canister, scoops up some water, and drops an iodine pill in. "I can't tell you how many tributes I've watched die from drinking bad water." I plop down next to her as she watches the iodine pill fizzle in the water. I would have never even thought of water purification. "I'm such an idiot," I say. "No you're not," says Heather without looking up from the bubbles. "You would have stayed there if you were an idiot." True. About twenty minutes later, Heather declares the water safe. Brion snatches the canister and drinks before I can even reach for it. Then he purposely drops it and spill all the water out. "Oops. Sorry," he says in a mocking tone. I reach reflexively for my knife, but pull my hand away and grab the canister instead. I stand up and walk back to the water's edge, to refill it. I have no tolerance for stupidity, but I've had enough fighting for one day.

Apparently, Heather hasn't. I turn back just in time to see her slap Brion across the face. He goes sprawling onto the ground. "You jerk!" screams Heather. Brion frowns. "I can't believe you're standing up for him! He's a Career!" he shouts, showing no concern that I'm only a few feet away. "He's killed just as many people as you have," says Heather simply. Then she moves next to me and sits down, pulling out another iodine pill. "Sorry about him." I shake my head and reply, "He's already got a preconception of what a Career is from watching years of games. One different Career won't change his mind that easily." Heather and I turn back to look at Brion, who sits on the ground, holding his face in his hands. "We're not gonna make it out of this arena, are we?" he finally gets out. Heather, who usually has an answer to questions, remains silent. As do I.

The sun continues to rise higher into the sky. By now, the other tributes must have realized we've gone. They'll be hunting for us. "I'll take first guard duty. You should get some rest," I say. Heather nods and lies down in the grass. Soon she is asleep. I turn from her to see if Brion is asleep yet. To my surprise, he's sitting up, watching me. "You can get some rest if you want," I say again. "How do I know you won't kill me in my sleep?" Brion asks. I sigh. "If my word isn't enough, then nothing will be." Brion remains silent for a moment, letting my words sink in. Then he lies down and closes his eyes. At last, I have gained his trust.

I watch the two tributes from 10 sleep for around an hour, and then turn to look at the water. The sun reflects off the lake, and gentle gusts of wind stroke the surface of the water, pushing small waves towards the grassy banks. It's peaceful, serene. And like most times of relaxation in the arena, it's fleeting. I hear the boy screaming before I see him, and I've already moved to wake up Heather and Brion before he comes into view across the lake. I don't care who he is; if he's not sleeping next to me, he's an enemy.


	13. Chapter 13: The Fall

It seems like I've just fallen asleep before I'm being woken up by Lucas. "Get up," he says in a stern voice. "A tribute is coming." I sit up quickly and rub my eyes as Lucas turns to wake up Brion. As Brion comes to, I look across the lake, where I can barely make out the boy whose screams have just reached my ears. I stand up, listening intently. "What's he saying?" asks Brion, who is now standing next to me. "He's calling for me. He's screaming my name," I reply after a moment. The boy, stumbling forward as if on a mission, spots us across the lake and starts to run. "We need to go," says Lucas. "I agree, let's get out of here," says Brion. He grabs my wrist. I hesitate. "He might need our help," I reply to the boys. "We can only help so many people. Now let's go," says Lucas unyieldingly. I sigh, then turn and run with the boys. Lucas has decided to run around the lake and head back to the forest, where we can climb a tree and hide out from this tribute. As we run, I look across the lake at the boy running after us. I can't tell who it is; the sun casts too much of a glare. He continues to call after me and now Brion as well. He's fast; by the time we round the lake and make it back to the forest, he's three-fourths of the way around. We jog into the forest, looking for a tree. "This one!" cries Brion. Lucas climbs up first, and I go next. Lucas scales the tree quickly; apparently climbing was included in his training regiment. I move along a bit slower, but eventually I make it into the higher branches covered in leaves. Brion joins us a second later. "Stay quiet. The boy's coming," he whispers.

That he is. "Heather! Brion!" he cries. Through the leaves, I can make him out on the ground, stumbling forward. I recognize him now; it's Richard, the boy from 9. Richard tries to call out for us once more, but his voice gives out and he falls to his knees, exhausted. "Heather, please! They took her!" he screams in a hoarse voice. Took who? I'm about to start climbing down when Lucas grabs me by the arm. He gives me a look that practically glues me to the branch on which I sit. Richard has apparently given up his chase; he lies on his side ranting on, as if speaking to the trees and grass. "They took her…took Eve," he groans between long, gravelly breaths. "Told me…5 hours…to find you…Flora…they'll kill her…have to find you…have to bring you back…" He stops talking and sits up, silently staring forward at something unseen. We may be far up in the tree, but I can still see his eyes shoot wide open. "No!" he is able to scream before something flies past his head. He spins and stumbles to his feet before another object embeds itself into his back and he falls again. It's an arrow. I cover my mouth to keep from screaming as the tributes from 1 enter the small patch of ground I can see. Beside me, Lucas impulsively moves is grip to his knife. The girl tribute strides forward and grabs Richard by the hair, lifting his head off the ground. "Look what we've got here, Togru!" she sneers. "Our next victim!" The boy strings his bow over his shoulder, walks forward, and silently observes Richard, who struggles in the girl's grip, letting out the occasional whimper of pain. Togru suddenly pulls out a knife and slits Richard's throat, a cannon fires, and it's over. Rachelle drops Richard's head and it hits the ground with a thump. The boy and girl then quickly and effectively search him for items. They come up empty-handed, and continue their trek through the forest. The three of us are deathly silent as the hovercraft comes to pick up Richard. I get a glimpse of his face as it passes by our branch. It remains twisted in agony. I slump back against the trunk of the tree. Eve only has a few minutes left. "Should we climb down?" whispers Brion. "Not yet, we need to wait for at least another hour," replies Lucas softly. "Until Eve dies," I whisper back, as tears begin to gather in my eyes. Brion and Lucas look at me somberly, and then look down at the ground, where a small bloodstain can be seen in the grass and dirt.

* * *

><p>It seems like a century has passed when the inevitable cannon finally fires. Thirteen of us left. Heather's shoulders heave up and down as she sobs silently. Brion stares stone-faced at the ground. I reach up and awkwardly pat Heather on the shoulder. "It'll be ok," I say. I don't know what else I could possibly say. Heather sighs. "No, it won't." Before I can answer, Brion says, "We should climb down now." I nod in agreement, and start my descent to the forest floor. I look in all directions as I climb down; there's no sign of Togru or Rachelle. I skip the last few branches and leap to the ground, landing in a crouch. "What was that for?" asks Brion, who hangs from a low branch so his feet dangle above the ground. "I don't know, instinctual." Incredible, I've done so much training that I can't even climb out of a tree normally. Brion lands on the ground. He looks up. "Come on Heather, let's go!" he yells.<p>

* * *

><p>I can hardly make out the details of the leaves through my teary eyes. I'm such a fool. How did I trick myself into believing I could win these Games? No alliance can protect me, not even this one. Eve thought she was safe, and now she's dead. Richard too. I'm just dead weight for Brion to carry around. He can win these Games; I know it. But he needs to get away from Lucas. He may be our ally now, but eventually Lucas will turn on us. He's a Career; it's in his nature. And Brion and I will both die when he does turn against us. There's no point in trying to run, we have nowhere to go. And he'll find us and kill us once we run out of steam. But I can't kill him. I'm not a murderer. I can't kill anyone. Except…<p>

"Come on Heather, let's go!" Brion yells from the forest floor. I silently wish both him and Lucas the best of luck, as I know that within the hour, one of them will be dead. Then I jump.

* * *

><p>Tree branches start snapping above me. I look up to see a figure, cloaked in shadow by the leaves and the slowly descending sun, plummeting towards the ground. A backpack filled with food and drink, as well as a sword, tumbles down and spills out onto the forest floor. The figure's head slams into a thick lower branch, and snaps forward in an unnatural motion. Then her fall ends with a sickening thud on the hard, unyielding ground. Brion immediately rushes over to Heather's still form, screaming. I, on the other hand, stand still, completely shocked. Brion kneels before Heather's broken body. Her arms and legs are crumpled up beneath her, and her head hangs eerily to one side. I can see Brion's hands, never touching her, but shaking above her as if he was trying to disarm a bomb. There's nothing he can do; the cannon fires, and she's gone.<p>

There is a brief moment where no one moves. No sounds can be heard except the ominous beeping from the collar around Brion's neck. Then he stands and turns away from Heather slowly, fixing an intense gaze on me that reminds me of the way a cat looks at a mouse before she leaps after it in hot pursuit. "Lucas," he says, pulling out a knife from his backpack as he walks towards me, "hold still." I dodge slightly to the left as Brion throws the knife. It goes way off target and hits the ground about six feet to the right of me. He pulls out another dagger and throws again. I dodge, but I underestimate his accuracy and it slices into my arm. I grunt and look down at my torn shirt and bleeding arm. It's just a cut. Brion is out of knives. He throws off his backpack and reaches for the sword that lies within his reach from where it fell. Picking it up, he yells a battle cry and charges me. I stand still, too stunned by the whole situation to even think. Just as he swings down for a deathblow, my Career instincts kick in. I spin to the left, and Brion's overpowered swing brings the sword down into the ground, knocking him off balance. He stumbles, and clumsily recovers, turning to face me once again. "Brion," I say in a wavering voice, "get away from me." He only answers with another cry and charges me again, this time holding the sword at waist level. He swings in a horizontal arc, and I dodge backward. He lifts the sword for a vertical swipe, and I have just enough time to yank out my two knives and move for a block before his swing comes in full contact with them. His sword caught in my two crossed knives, we stand, grunting and holding on for our lives. I look up for a moment at his shimmering blade, then down at his neck, where his collar beeps. I sigh, knowing what I must do next. Just like in training, I dodge to the side, taking the knives with me. With nothing to block or slice, the sword is brought down by Brion's arms into the ground. It sticks. I spin around Brion and slice downwards across his back with my right knife. He screams and drops his sword, reeling around to reach for his back with his right hand. Still spinning, I bring my left knife to slice across his wrist, drawing more blood. Another scream. He falls to the ground, writhing in pain. I walk past him, grab the hilt of the sword, yank it out of the ground and, with tears in my eyes, spin around and decapitate him as he tries to stand. His head hits the ground just as the cannon fires. A moment later, his body follows suit.

I toss the sword away and walk towards Heather's discarded backpack, away from both of their bodies. I grab some gauze to wrap my arm, but my hands shake too much to work it around the cut, and I eventually give up. The tears that I have been holding in since Sydni's death finally come out, and I sob on the ground as the hovercraft picks up both Heather and Brion's bloodied bodies. I cry for a long time, until the sun sets and the anthem drowns out my cries. The girl and boy grom 9 appear first. I didn't know them, but my heart still clenches when I see the girl's sickly eyes staring back at me. Heather's smiling face appears in the sky, followed by Brion's, filled with uncertainty. Then they are gone, and I suddenly fall asleep on the ground, feeling very tired.


	14. Chapter 14: The Fourth Dream

_In my dream, I stand in a giant, empty ballroom. A single spotlight is the only source of light in the room, shining down onto me. I look down to see that I am wearing a fancy new suit. The buttons shine in the light, as do my black shoes. This, I realize, was my outfit during the tribute interviews. A single viola plays from somewhere above my head. I look up quickly as another spotlight blinks down a few feet on from me. A teenage couple dances in the circle of light. I move towards them, and my spotlight follows. I finally get close enough to the other couple to see that they are the boy and girl from District 8, the ones who died first. They each wear the same outfits from their interviews. They stare intensely at each other through seemingly desperate eyes as they waltz about in a coordinated circle. Their skin is pale, apparently drained of all blood. Their right hands are locked together, jutting slightly outward as the boy leads the girl in the never-ending circle that is their dance. His left hand clasps her back, and hers sits gently on his shoulder. I try to reach out to them, but just as I do, another spotlight blinks on to the right of them, and I turn to see Marilee and Jude dancing together. I walk towards them, but then another spotlight blinks on, then another, and another. Soon there are six spotlights shining around me, each with a dead pair of tributes dancing drearily together. I recognize all of them; the boy and girl from 12 who I watched die at the banks of the lake, the boy and girl from 6 who I killed personally in the forest. The girl from 9, who no longer looks sickly, only pale. She has a small smile on her face as she stares up into the eyes of her partner who I watched die from the safety of the tree. Then I see Heather and Brion. The duo's feet move systematically, synchronized in death. The two stare at each other, just like the others. Then they turn together to stare at me, still dancing. A cello joins the viola in its eerie music making. I take a cautious step away from them, and catch out of the corner of my eye that the other tributes are staring at me as well. I soon realize that the tributes aren't looking at me, but past me._

_I turn and see her._

_She wears a dress the color of the snow on the peaks of the mountains of District 2. Her hands are locked into place in the air as she dances, just like the others. But there is no shoulder for her to clutch, no hand tenderly wrapped around her waist. She stares up into the place where her partner's eyes should be, tears falling from her own eyes and tracing down her face to the down-turned corners of her mouth. Sydni dances alone. I move towards her quickly, the viola and cello becoming louder and more intense as I do so. Sydni spins faster as I approach, her glossy hair coming out of her delicate braids and falling to her shoulders. As I finally reach her and reach out to stop her spins, the viola and cello stop. Sydni ceases her spins to face me full on, her hair spinning a few seconds longer until it drops down to her shoulders, her eyes staring so hard at me that I reflexively pull my hand back, away from her. She stares at me, silent, and I reach out my hands to grab her own. She closes her eyes and shakes her head and suddenly my hands are covered in blood and I'm in my tattered arena uniform. I gasp, and turn to run from her. Only to come face-to-face with Brion, who chops my head off with a sword._ I wake up screaming.


	15. Chapter 15: Muttation

It's still early in the morning. The horizon is painted in a faint yellow as the sun as just begun to peek up over the ground. I don't feel like eating at all, but I remind myself how foolish it would be to die of starvation after everything that has happened in the past three days. I pick up the bloodstained sword and try unsuccessfully to clean it by rubbing dirt on it. Only some of the blood comes off, and I soon give up, stuffing the hilt into Heather's backpack. I strap the backpack on and climb the tree that our trio had hidden in the previous day. Once I am hidden in the foliage, I search through the backpack for something to eat. Nothing looks particularly appetizing, and I end up settling with a bruised apple and some of the water left over from the single canteen we brought from the lake. I munch quietly and stare at my reflection in the few shiny patches that remain on the sword. Maybe it's the distortion from the slight curve of the blade, but I look like I'm near death. My brown hair is stained with dirt and blood, and my face has a haggard look to it.

A small rustling noise behind me makes me jump and spin around quickly, pulling out one of my knives from its hilt. A small bird sits perched on a small twig, staring intently at me with its beady black eyes. I lower my knife; it looks like a baby chick. But chicks don't fly…do they? The bird lets out small chirps and hops around, never taking its eyes off me. It has yellow feathery fluff surrounding its body on all sides, which puffs up and down each time the bird squeaks, "Peep!" I smile and reach out with my hand. The bird immediately hops into it. It tickles my hand as it hops about; I laugh. The bird stares up at me, still chirping. Then it inflates to the size of my head and lets out the shrillest, highest, loudest noise I've ever heard in my entire life. I drop the bird, but it's too late. The bird's screech, disproportional compared to its body, sends my hands straight for my ears. But it's still too loud, and I suddenly get dizzy and I lose my traction on the branch and I slip off and I fall. "Muttation," I think. For about two seconds, all I see is the ground, quickly approaching. I open my mouth to scream, but nothing comes out. Maybe it's because the bird's shrill cry is too loud, or maybe it's because I'm in shock. I unintentionally take my hands away from my ears and start to flail in the air. Amazingly, just before impact, I catch a branch. It strains under my weight, but slows me down just enough to defer a deathly impact before it breaks and I hit the ground.

Dizzily, I regain my footing just as the bird bounces down to the ground a few feet away from me. I guess it can't fly, but it's not giving up the chase. It turns towards me, looking rather dazed. It puffs up and screeches for just a fraction of a second before the knife I throw at it makes impact. The bird pops. No exaggeration; I actually hear the puff of air that is released from the cavities of the bird's body as it spectacularly and bloodily explodes.

By the time the ringing in my ears starts to fade, I've already gathered up my knife and the few other objects that accompanied me in my fall to the ground, and climbed back up into the tree where my backpack still sits. I suspect the muttation's cry was heard all throughout the arena, and multiple tributes must be converging on my position. No sooner have I gotten back into cover that I hear voices coming from the direction of the Cornucopia. "It came from over here! Over here!" It isn't hard to recognize the voice of the girl from 5, the one who first found me up in the tree while I was sleeping three nights ago. She won't find me this time.

The voices are getting louder, and more numerous. I move so that my back is against the firm trunk of the tree, so I won't be snuck up on like last time. The tributes come into view below me. I can see them through the branches and leaves of the tree, the tributes from 3, 5, and 11. They stand in a circle around the remains of the bird, chattering loudly and pointing in different directions.

I realize that the tributes from 7 are missing just as I hear branches rustling directly behind me. I press up against the trunk of the tree and slip one of my knives out from its holster. I quickly decide to put it back; if the tribute falls from the tree with a slit throat, the other tributes will know that I'm up here. This has to appear to be an accident. The rustling gets closer; I'm pretty sure the tribute is now in my tree. I listen intently, trying to see from which direction my attacker will come. A branch to my right rustles, and I silently move and prepare to attack. As soon as the tribute's foot comes into view, right in front of me, I swiftly shoot my leg out and kick it. Hard. I hear bones crunch, a loud grunt, and then the boy from 7 is falling from the tree, screaming. Five seconds later, I hear his impact. The girl from 5 screams. I hold completely still, listening to the voices below me, but not daring to look. Somewhere in the tree directly across from me, I hear a girl's voice.

"What's happening down there? What's…oh God! Kent!"

Branches creak, leaves rustle.

"Kent? Kent, wake up! What's wrong with his neck? Did he fall?"

Silence.

"Answer me!"

More silence, broken by the sounds of a scuffle, a short scream, a cannon, and a beeping noise.

"Let's get out of here," a girl says.

The sounds of running footsteps fades away, until all that's left is that awful beeping noise. I risk a peek, and I can't say I'm shocked at what I see. On the ground below the tree lies the boy from 7, paralyzed and unconscious. A couple feet from him lies his partner, fresh blood still pouring out of her slit throat like a fountain. I can't say I feel sorry for her death, but I am sorry it had to be like that. After a few moments, the beeping stops and a cannon fires as the boy from 7's heart finally gives out. The hovercraft claw picks both of them up in one scoop, and lifts them away. I slump back against the trunk, taking a few moments to calm myself, and then scoop up my backpack and climb down briskly. I'm leaving the forest; it's no longer safe.


	16. Chapter 16: The Choice

As I walk through the forest, heading back for the lake to get more water for my journey, I try to make a plan on how to end these games as quickly as possible. There are 9 of us left; the six in Flora's alliance, Rachelle and Togru, who are most likely stalking that group, and me. Alone. An attack on either group would be suicidal. Rachelle and Togru have less numbers, but I have no idea where they are, giving them the element of surprise. Flora's alliance is at the Cornucopia, but six against one is not favorable odds. It's true that with everyone linked to their partner, the tributes would be less likely to go all-out on me if I did attack them. But the fact that they are still in the alliance with Flora shows that they aren't the smartest kids in here, and I would expect them to fight me just as hard as they normally would without a partner. I hear a noise behind me, and I spin to see a parachute slowly draping over a small container. A sponsor gift, most likely my last at this point in the games. I stoop down and pick it up, observing it. The container is glass; I can see that it is filled with small white cubes. Sugar? I then see the note attached to the lid of the container. "Do not drop in water!" I remember my dream, where Togru was sitting on the floor of the chemicals station in the Training Room, holding the same white cubes with his tongs.

"Pure sodium. Not very deadly by itself. But mix it with water and you'll get a violent explosion."

I stare at the container in awe. Cato has given me at least three pounds of sodium. I'm not a chemist, but I know for a fact that pure sodium cannot be found naturally on Earth. This must have been created in one of the new Capitol research centers. And it must have cost a fortune. For the first time, I entertain in my mind the thought that the citizens of the Capitol and District 2 must all be backing me. Here I am, the only tribute that lived after his partner died, the only tribute that is alone in the arena. And I'm doing well.

Excited, I run the rest of the way to the lake, pausing only momentarily at the forest's edge to make sure no tributes are nearby. Then I run to the lake, drop down to my knees, and scoop up some water with the canister in my backpack. I drop an iodine pill inside and set it aside. I snatch up the canister and twist the lid open. Pressurized air escapes with a hiss. I shake one of the sodium cubes into my hand. It's about the same size as a sugar cube; it even has the same texture. Time to test it. I take out my knife and whittle off one of the corners of the cube. I put the cube down on the grass, and stand up at the water's edge. With all my might, I throw the small bit of sodium as far as I can. It sails through the air and hits the water. Immediately, a geyser of water shoots up about five feet, accompanied with a small "bang". Amazing. I'm tempted to throw the rest of the cube into the water, but I decide not to; it might draw unwanted attention to the lake.

I decide to climb a tree not far from the edge of the forest and wait out the rest of the day. Up in the tallest tree I can find, I eat and drink some of my food, which I have a lot of thanks to Heather's meticulous packing the night she freed me. I occupy myself with thinking of ways to use the sodium against my competition. By the time the anthem sounds, I'm convinced that the only way the sodium would kill everyone is if it were raining. No deaths today. The anthem blinks out. I find a nice branch to sleep on and close my eyes. The cannon opens them up immediately. Someone has died. I get up from my reclined position and feel my heart begin to race as another cannon fires. The third cannon is what gets me to climb down from the tree. Rachelle and Togru must be attacking the tributes in Flora's alliance; this is the perfect moment to get the drop on them.

It takes me about an hour to get to the Cornucopia, and by that time, another cannon has fired, announcing the death of another tribute. The only light I see is a small campfire, around which two figures can be seen walking. Two others lie on the ground, struggling. I approach, using the darkness as cover, and lie down in a patch of grass close enough to see what's going on. The campfire provides good cover; its light prevents anyone's eyes from adjusting and seeing me in the grass. The boy and girl from 3 lie bound and gagged next to the campfire. Why are they still alive? Rachelle comes into view, dragging the body of the girl from 5 across the ground. She tosses her onto something that the campfire's light does not illuminate fully. I'd wager a guess that it's the bodies of Flora, her partner Flax, and the girl from 5's partner. My suspicions are confirmed as the hovercraft comes to pick up the dead tributes one at a time. Four claw drops and lifts later, the hovercraft disappears. Crawling backwards, I start to sneak away from the horn, and head back to my tree when I hear voices and freeze.

"Three left, Togru. Then we're going home." Rachelle sounds confident, but I can sense the fatigue behind her voice. Togru doesn't answer. He limps into view from behind the horn and slumps down onto the ground. He stares at his leg for a moment before muttering, "Do we have any bandages?" Rachelle goes to look for some behind the horn. In the light of the fire, I can see the stream of blood trickling out of Togru's leg. He must have been cut badly by one of Flora's group. Rachelle comes back with some cloth, and begins to wrap his leg. "Do you think you'll be able to run on it?" Togru nods. "I'll be fine tomorrow. It's just a little cut." Rachelle tightens the knot of cloth and Togru winces, sucking in breath sharply. Rachelle stares at him for a moment. Then she jumps up and rushes over to the boy from 3 on the ground. She groans and starts kicking him in the chest. Her groans quickly become screams of frustration. Then, with one final kick, she slumps to the ground and begins to sob. "We're gonna die. Lucas is gonna come and...and...he'll kill us tonight," she whimpers. Togru stares at his leg, and the two tributes from 3, especially the boy, scream and moan through their gags.

And once again, I'm at a loss for what to do. Kill, or run away?


	17. Chapter 17: The Final 2

After sneaking back to the forest, I find a tree close enough to the edge of the tree line to keep watch on the Cornucopia, but far back enough that I can't be seen myself. I can see Togru rocking back and forth, holding his leg. Rachelle sits next to him, her head in her hands. The tributes from 3 lie motionless on the ground. I could have killed them all. Thrown my knife at Rachelle's head, yanked out my sword and sliced into Togru before he could even stand up. Then it would have just been the tied-up tributes. I could have won tonight. But it wasn't the safest option. I could have missed the knife throw. Togru could have had a hidden weapon close to his location that he could have used to block my sword. The factors just weren't on my side. I decide to wait until morning. I climb down a few feet until I find a nice, sturdy branch. I fall asleep quickly.

By the time I wake up the following morning, the sun is already high in the sky. I sit up, reaching into my backpack for some food. I have to dig around before I find my last bit of food, a packet of granola bits. I eat the entire pack, and drink half of my water. I'm planning on winning within the hour, so there's no need for saving my food. I climb up to my viewing point, and stare out at the Cornucopia.

What I see surprises me. Togru is lying flat on the ground. Even from up here in my tree, I can see that he is shaking. Rachelle stands over him, with her back to me. Things aren't looking good for the pair; something must really be wrong with his leg.

I climb down from my tree, leaving my backpack sitting against the trunk of the tree. I yank out my knife and sword, and start running towards the Cornucopia. I'm ending this now.

Rachelle hears me coming by the time I'm in throwing range. She doesn't even look as I scream and throw my knife. She simply drops and rolls to the right, towards the two tied-up tributes. My knife, which was heading for her leg, instead embeds itself into Togru's neck. He grunts, and stops shaking. I get a glimpse of his bloodied, gauze-wrapped leg before snapping my head up to see where Rachelle has gone. Togru's cannon sounds just as Rachelle rips the gags out of the District 3 tributes' mouths. Her collar beeps only once before she slices her knife across the boy's neck. His cannon sounds immediately as he slumps to the ground, dead. I've only just gotten my sword into my hands as Rachelle begins running towards the forest, two knives in each hand.

I'm about to take off after her when I hear, "Stop!" I turn to look at the tied-up girl from 3, whose collar is now beeping. I look at her, and turn to look for Rachelle, who has already reached the edge of the forest. She stops only long enough to rip off her collar, and then disappears into the cover of the trees, out of sight. I sigh, disappointed in my failed attempt to win the Games in one clean stroke, and sit down next to the girl, who has started crying. "Please untie me," she sobs. I'm not falling for it; she only wants to kill me so that she can live. I stand up and begin to scour the Cornucopia for leftover food, as the hovercraft comes and picks up Togru and Xavier's bodies. "Pleeeeeeeease…" the girl sobs. Besides her constant whimpering, the only sound is her collar's beeping, which has been slowly getting faster as the minutes tick by.

I plop down across from the girl after a few minutes, with a few packs of beef jerky and some granola. "Hungry?" I ask. The girl stares at me, her anger and confusion permeating from her face. When she realizes I'm not joking, she nods. I pull out my knife and free her arms, leaving her legs tied. She sobs quietly as I hand her a pack of granola. "So why'd they keep you guys alive?" I ask. "They came at night, when me and Xavier were on watch," says the girl through mouthfuls of granola. "They ran past us and killed Flora first. Then the got Trey, the boy from 5. Kai woke up because of the cannon blasts and went crazy. Thought Flora and Flax were attacking us. She broke Flax's neck as he was getting up. Then the girl from 2 knifed her from behind."

The girl pauses as her collar starts to beep faster. "You've got about fifty minutes left," I tell her. She nods, no longer crying. Then she continues. "They were planning on going after you tonight. But the boy got sick, something went wrong with his leg. They were keeping us alive in case one of them died when they fought you. The other one would run back—"

"And kill you to save themself," I finish. The girl nods. We sit silent for a moment. I turn and look back at the forest line. Rachelle's head pokes out from behind a tree, and disappears quickly as she sees me staring in her direction.

I turn back to the girl, who has started crying again. "What's your name?" I ask. "Q-Qu-Quinn," she gets out. "Well Quinn," I say neutrally, "I'm going to let you go." Quinn stops crying and stares at me, shocked. Her face quickly turns sour again as she stares down at her beeping collar. "A whole lot of good that'll do me," she whines. "You're much stronger than me, and I have no idea where the girl from 2 is." She wails loudly. I pull out my sword, and Quinn shrieks and tries to move away from me. I slice the ropes that keep her legs tied together. Quinn stands up shakily, feeling the blood start flowing back into her legs. I toss her my sword, and she fumbles it in the air before catching it. "She's right there," I say, pointing off at Rachelle's head, which promptly disappears behind a tree. No sooner have I said this when Quinn rushes past me towards the forest, sword held high over her right shoulder, a high-pitched battle cry erupting from her wide-open mouth.

Rachelle steps out from behind her tree, pulls her knife-wielding hand behind her back, and throws the knife at Quinn.

I don't see the knife hit Quinn, but I do hear her cry cut off. I see her begin to slow down in her approach. Her sword arm drops. Soon she is walking, no, stumbling towards Rachelle, who stands with a knowing smirk on her face. Quinn drops her sword. Then, still shambling forward, she falls forward and lands on her face, only a couple of feet from Rachelle. Her head stays a foot above the ground due to the knife handle protruding from her head. As her cannon fires, her head begins to slide down the knife, slowly. It finally comes to a rest on the ground. Rachelle saunters over to Quinn's inert body and picks her head up by the hair. She yanks the knife out of her skull and lets her head drop back to the ground. She looks towards me.

We stare each other down.

Then she pulls out another knife and carves something into it. She throws the bloodied knife towards me. It flies high in the air, disappearing in the sun's glare. It lands about five feet away from me, blade stuck in the ground. I yank it out and stare at what she has carved into the wooden handle.

"Tonight."

I look up at her and nod. She apparently sees it, because she turns and walks away into the forest. I turn and sit down next to the Cornucopia, picking up another sword and holding it on my legs. Tonight.

Tonight I will kill Rachelle. Tonight I will win.

* * *

><p>...still writing the end of the this story. Review what I've written so far please!<p> 


	18. Chapter 18: Endgame

After about thirty minutes of sitting and watching the trees, I get up to go retrieve my backpack from where I left it sitting against the tree. I make sure to take the sword with me, just in case Rachelle changes her mind about tonight.

Tonight.

Tonight is a lot of things. It could be my last night. The last time I eat something. The last time I take a breath.

But it could also be the last time I have to kill someone. The last night I have to spend in this cursed arena. The last night before I can go home.

I get to the tree, and find my backpack still sitting against the tree. I give a sigh of relief; Rachelle hasn't stolen anything.

I reach for the backpack, but stop almost immediately.

The backpack is unzipped. I distinctly remember zipping it shut before leaving for the Cornucopia. There's only one explanation: Rachelle has been here. I nudge the backpack with my sword gingerly. Nothing happens. I slowly open the bag. Still nothing. I take a look inside.

Oh no.

I pull out an apple and smell it. I retch and fling it far away from me. Poisoned.

After a few minutes of searching through the bag, it becomes very clear that Rachelle has poisoned all of my food. Togru must have taught her how. Now, besides the few scraps of food that remain at the Cornucopia, there is no food let in the arena.

Even worse, the canister of sodium is gone.

I turn and bolt back towards the Cornucopia, trying to plan. Rachelle might be doing some sabotage there as well. And with no sodium and very little food. I'm running out of options.

I reach the Cornucopia and immediately rush to see if Rachelle has been here as well. Sure enough, all the food is missing from the golden horn. I pound a fist up against the side of the Cornucopia in frustration. No sodium, no food. Only weapons.

It's then that I see the markings in the dirt around the bonfire. I step back so I can read them.

"Meet at the lake tonight."

I only know of one lake in the arena. The lake where Marilee and the tributes from 12 died. The lake where I spent a few hours with the tributes from 10. The lake where I tested out the sodium.

The sodium. Rachelle must know how to use it, if she wants us to meet there.

I slump to the ground. There's no way I can beat Rachelle. She's better with weapons, she's got food, and she's got sodium. The only thing I have that she doesn't at the moment is mental stability.

I look up at the sun. Judging by its position, I'd guess that I have about two hours until I need to head for the lake.

I search around the Cornucopia, looking for a weapon or some item that will help me in my fight. I end up having to stick with my sword; I'm not proficient enough to use the weapons that remain.

After about two hours pass, I get up and start walking towards the lake, my sword, and only my sword in hand.

The sun is just beginning to dip under the horizon. The whole forest is deathly silent, as if it knows that I'm potentially heading off to my death. No wind brushing the leaves together, no caws or cries of animals in the trees. Just my feet stepping rhythmically and occasionally crunching leaves that have fallen to the ground.

I stop and stare as a brown leaf falls from a tree and lands on the ground at my feet.

"What's it like to die?" I wonder. Did Brion feel any pain when I beheaded him? Did it hurt when Marilee's head exploded?

"What happens when I die?" I wonder. Is there anything after this? Many people in District 2 entertain the thought in their heads that dead tributes wander the past arenas as ghosts, searching for other tributes to kill. Others simply believe that everything ends when the sword comes down on your head, when the last of your blood is drained out, when your heart beats for the final time. I don't know what I believe.

I step over the leaf and continue on my way.

I reach the lake after about an hour. The sun is halfway down now, and it bathes the waters with its golden glow.

I see Rachelle immediately. She stands facing the sun, about forty feet away from me, her hair flowing like smoke in the sudden gust of wind that picks up. I contemplate sneaking up on her and ending it quickly, but immediately push the thought out of my head. She knows I'm here.

Rachelle turns to face me. I see the can of sodium in one hand, and a long sword in the other. Another sword lies on the ground, near the water.

"So nice of you to join me, Lucas," she says. The way she says it reminds me of the way my teacher would reprimand me for showing up late to class. She drops the can of sodium and picks up the other sword. I can't help but remember her in the Training Center, butchering dummies with her dual swords. And I'm next. I don't want to be here right now.

I shrug my shoulders. "No place I'd rather be," I respond.

"LIAR!" shrieks Rachelle. She charges at me. I grip my own sword in my two hands, preparing to block.

Rachelle reaches me, and sweeps one sword diagonally down towards my chest. I jump backwards and block her next swipe at my waist. Rachelle brings her swords together and swipes down at my head. I dodge and block, before sliding my sword up her own to slice at her chest. She shoves up and knocks my sword away. We pull apart and stare at one another. Rachelle grins wickedly at me and shrieks again, slashing at me again. I dodge and block as best as I can, but she keeps coming.

One of Rachelle's swords knocks my own out of my sweaty hands. The next slashes across my arm. I yelp in pain and kick Rachelle in her chest. She stumbles backwards. I grab my sword and move just in time to block Rachelle's vertical swipe.

It's at this point that I notice the smell. I've smelled it before. Just a few nights ago, in fact. Immediately, I get an idea. Rachelle smells it too. She pauses in our battle long enough to gag, giving me time to kick her in the stomach and knock her down. She moves her swords to block herself, but I'm not striking down at her. I'm running for the can of sodium. Because I know that the basilisk is more dangerous than Rachelle will ever be. Rachelle has gotten up and is running after me. I grab the can and spin, slicing Rachelle across the chest just as the basilisk breaks out of the trees. Rachelle cries out in pain, alerting the basilisk to her position. I spin behind Rachelle and shove her. She sprawls forward and splashes into the water. Her blood mixes with the water and creates a scent that can even be smelled over the basilisk's pungent odor. It charges forward in search of a meal.

Rachelle gets to her feet just as I unscrew the can of sodium. Wipes the water out of her eyes just as the basilisk takes its first step into the water. Screams just as I toss the open can towards the water. I turn and start sprinting away from the water, looking back to see the basilisk sink its teeth into Rachelle's side just as the can hits the water.

The sky turns white.

…

…

…

"…critical condition…severe burns all over his face…"

…

…

"_Lucas?"_

_I open my eyes to see Sydni sitting on my bed. She smiles down at me._

"_Where am I?" I ask her. "Am I dead?"_

_She runs her hand down the side of my face. "Lucas."_

_I reach out for her. "Sydni."_

_She takes my face in both of her hands. "Lucas."_

_I smile up at her._

_Then she turns into the basilisk and screams, "WAKE UP!" before rushing down to devour my face__…_

I bolt awake with a scream. The people in the room scream too. I hear them, but I can't see them. Everything is black. I know I'm in a bed; I try to get out but end up falling on my face onto the floor. Hands grab at me. Flora's alliance. I scream and flail and gnash my teeth until I end up biting one of them. Something sharp plunges into my arm and things go more black than they already are…

…

…

…

"_Lucas."_

_I wake up in the ballroom. The tributes all dance around me in a circle. Sydni stands in the circle, a short distance from me. She reaches her hands out for my own. _

"_Dance with me, Lucas."_

_I stand and reach my hands for her own. Everything is happening so slowly, I step forward and just as we make contact-_

Cold water.

I can feel it running down my face. I open my eyes and wait for them to adjust. They don't. Everything is black. I start to panic. I start to scream.

Powerful hands press down on my shoulders and push me back down onto the bed. "Lucas, can you hear me?"

I continue to flail and scream.

"Lucas! Stop!"

I go still as I recognize the voice. Cato.

"Where am I?" I scream at him. "Where's Sydni?"

A towel dries the water from my face. Cato pauses for a moment before responding. "You're in a hospital in the Capitol. You've been here for a week now. Recovering."

"What happened?" I ask.

"The blast from the explosion severely burned your skin. Almost everything that wasn't covered by clothes was burnt to a crisp. You have new skin grafts, and you look just about normal now. The explosion also blinded you. Permanently."

I sit still for a long time in silence. Blind. Burned.

When I finally gain the ability to speak again, I ask one question.

"I won?"

"Yes, you won," says Cato. "They're all dead."


	19. Chapter 19: Epilogue

Eventually I was able to make it out of my bed and out of the hospital, back to my quarters in the Capitol. Cato was there to guide me to the places I needed to go, whether that was to the kitchen for food, or to the bathroom, or to the Victor's Celebration in the Capitol Square outside the President's home. I felt him place the crown on my head, heard him congratulate me. Then I heard the video recap of the games. All I heard were screams and sounds of death, ended by a static-filled explosion.

The Victor's Tour was a nightmare. Because despite my blindness, I can still see them all in my head.

"We're in District 1, Lucas." Rachelle comes at me with her twin swords, screaming shrilly.

"We're in District 3, Lucas." Quinn shambles towards me, a bloody knife hilt protruding from her head.

"District 4, Lucas." Marilee's head explodes again and again and again.

"District 6, Lucas." The fat boy walks towards me, preparing to drape a noose over my head.

"District 8, Lucas." The girl runs towards me with a knife, screaming, "It's me! It's me!"

"District 10, Lucas." Heather jumps from the tree, and I can't stop her, can't catch her.

"We're in District 11, Lucas." Flora grins at my tied-up form on the ground, and comes towards me with a knife, her collar beeping.

"District 12, Lucas." The little girl cries in the Training Center, defenselessly, helplessly,

"We're home, Lucas." Sydni. Sydni haunts my dreams every night.

I live in the Victor's Village in District 2 now, with my family. I sit in my chair and have people read to me, or listen to music. They all tell me that everyone's dead, but I don't believe them. Because when I fall asleep, I can see Sydni, I can see them all in that ballroom, dancing…dancing…coming for me. Together we dance.

Together we die.

**THE END**


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